Friends

This is a quick sketch of some little people who were running around in my head today.  They seem to be best friends.  I'm sure they share fun and games and scrapes and squabbles as well.

I have been praying intensely for some friends this week.  One in California whose family was in the path of the wildfires.  Today a friend in Boulder, Colorado, had to evacuate because the flood waters are rising near her home.  Another friend is seeking employment, another friend is in last stages of cancer, one's little boy just had 2 brain surgeries in one week, and the list goes on as I'm sure does yours.

We grieve with friends and we celebrate.  We are refreshed by friends. Friends are so important to our soul.   It is written that David loved Jonathan as his own soul - that their souls were knit as one (1 Samuel 18:1).  I have only had a few close friends, but time, distance and moving has intervened in those friendships.  Yet when we have opportunity to talk it is as tho' we begin where we last were.

A true friend can keep you in check and even kindly point our your error.    "Iron sharpeneth iron, so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend " (Proverbs 27:17).

Celebrations are not complete without friends.  The woman who lost a piece of silver called her friends to celebrate when she found it  (Luke 15:8-10). 

Jesus reflected that "greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).  Several of my friends and a cousin have children in the military.  One has been to Iraq three times, and one is currently serving in Afghanistan.  You may not know them specifically - but they are my friends in need of prayer.

The greatest friend of all has already laid down His life for us.  And He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24).  Jesus desires to be your friend, to give you comfort, encouragement, counsel, to share your joy and your sorrow.  Draw near to Him and celebrate His friendship.  Share your worries, your triumphs, your prayers for your friends and your love.  

Celebrate your friendships today.

Laura

Walk Worthy

If someone followed your path would they know that you are a Christian?

In your home....
In your workplace...
In public....
In private...
In your relationships?

Do your reactions and interactions glorify the One who gave His life for you?

Would someone be drawn to Christ by your disposition?

Are your actions and characteristics those that honor the home the Lord has given you, the family He's entrusted to you, and the people in which He's placed you in contact?  Does your path take you alongside the Lord to grow in knowledge each day?

Please take no offense at any of these questions.  I asked these of myself today after reading Colossians 1:10 during my devotion time.  "That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."   

Walking worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing....there's that little word again....all.      If all of my walk should be worthy 'of the Lord,' then there are areas that definitely need cleaning out and improvement.  (I'm glad you haven't seen my basement lately.) And since I've mentioned it...I'm glad you can't hear every thought in my head which could use some reining in. God has promised to help with that... "and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). 

Fruitful in every good work...is there time that I fritter away (I'm not speaking of relaxation-we do need that)...For a small example...every time I spend 1/2 an hour looking for something because I know I have that thing - and end up driving to the store to buy another--it's not expensive---but now I've wasted time AND money simply because I wasn't organized.  

God cannot entrust us with much...if we don't take care of a little.  He cannot fill us with spiritual knowledge if we clutter our minds with worldly thoughts and preoccupations. I have some cleaning out to do I know - so that my walk will be more worthy of the Lord and his presence.

A final question....When I walk by do I leave behind a sweet savor of the Lord's presence?
This devotion was for me today...I have  'cleaning' to do within me.  But if you want to help me start on the basement...Friday works for me.  :)

Walk worthy of the Lord today.
Laura

Whazat?

Here's a quick little doodle of my grandson, Lincoln, saying, "Whazat?"  For a few months it was about the only thing he could say.  He would spy the tiniest speck on the ceiling, or hear a sound, or see a picture or food on your plate and then point and demand 'whazat?' His curiosity is boundless and the word convenient....

Sometimes I'd like to do that with God....point at a situation and say, "whazat?"  [Translation:  is this to teach me faith, or patience, trust or obedience, caring or compassion?]   I mean - isn't it sometimes easier to understand the lesson if we know what it's about ahead of time?

Ah - me - it's not to be...usually I have to wait until the house drops on my head to understand...

But I had a wonderful revelation this morning. I've been praying about my future doing this 'art thing,' wondering if it's what God wants me to do, if it can be modestly lucrative, or if I should be seeking some 'real' employment to help meet our financial needs and for retirement which is getting closer. This morning in pray I asked God, "Whazat?" [with a bit of an attitude I'm not proud of].  Actually my question was more like "God, please, will you just assure me if you want me to continue with this ministry."

I finished my prayer time, then in a bit of desperation for scripture to read, I picked up a random daily devotional and turned to today's date.  There were two references for today.
Colossians 3:2, "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."
Deuteronomy 28  (the whole chapter is rich with promise...but here are the verses that stood out to me...)  
1-If thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments...
2-... all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee  (did you get that?   God will chase us down with his blessings!)
11 And the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body,
12 The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

Retirement?   What could be better off than the Lord's good treasure?  Medical bills?  God's blessings will overtake me - why worry?  

My answer was simple.   Hearken to God's voice and observe his commandments and there shall be blessings.  I plan to stay on this path...working for God's purpose and glory...I will not be deterred unless He resets the course.

If you are seeking an answer I encourage you to ask God, 'whazat?' and he will show you.  Search His word and be prepared to hear His voice speak to you.

May you be overtaken with blessings today!
Laura

Plans for the Future

This is short and sweet today....I've been grand-babysitting most of it.
Here's an amazing kid friendly painting project using bubble wrap and rubber stamps.  Details below.

This project re-purposes bubble wrap in a way that you may not think of.   I kind of relate that to our existence.   God has plans and purposes for us of which we would never dream. He says, "Call unto me and I will answer thee and shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not" (Jeremiah 33:3) He would paint our world in technicolor if we would only let him lead.

Aren't you curious about the picture he wants to paint with you?  How he molds us and shapes will be ongoing until we reach that glorious moment of promise.

Trust him today for your future!
Laura

Art Instructions:  
Supplies:   Bubble wrap              Paint in bright colors(Washable poster paint or liquid acrylic)
                large shape rubber stamps.  My stamps were the inexpensive foam backed type
                Heavy paper or canvas  (I used very cheap paper for the demo  above)

Cut bubble wrap into desired shape.  We did squares.

Puddle the paint on a surface large enough to accommodate the rubber stamp (we used foam paper plates).

Lightly press the bubble wrap squares into the paint.  Then  press it onto paper.
Repeat this process with different colors.  Don't worry if a few bubbles don't make an impression

When the background has dried, you are ready for the rubber stamp.

Lightly press stamp into an opposite color, or contrasting color, then press over the dotted squares.

Once all paint is dry you can draw an outline around the squares if desired.  These looked very nice when mounted on a piece of black construction paper.

Did Creation Take Place In 6 Literal Days?

A missionary facebook friend of mine, Arabah Joy, who is currently overseas in Asia, asked a question on September 3 that resulted in a lengthy online discussion.   Her question was:  "As a Christian do you believe in a literal 6 Day Creation?"  You can go to the link in the paragraph above to view the discussion. (over 70 people responded).

My answer briefly put was, Yes. If we do not take Genesis literally (using the original Hebrew text) then we will fall into a trap questioning what else in the Bible is not literal, Jesus' resurrection for example.  

One person's defense for not accepting a literal interpretation of Genesis was John 6:54, "whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life."  They stated that this was not to be taken literally and they are correct....BUT Jesus made that clear when you go back and read John 6:51, "I am the living bread which came down from heaven."  (Any time something is symbolic in the Bible it is made clear by the speaker and when taken in context.)

My thought for today is this:  Our acceptance of God and of His Word, becomes a matter of pure FAITH.   Take my unicorn for example.  Did it really exist?  The unicorn is mentioned in the Bible 6 times (Numbers 23:22, 24:8, Job 39:9 and 10, Psalm 29:6, 92:10).  Now it may not have looked like my painting, but it did exist.  Also the great leviathan and the same with dinosaurs coexisting with man, because they were both created on Day 6 (Genesis 1:24-31).  You can read more about that in an earlier post of mine.  

Arabah stated something rather profound in her response to the discussion on Sept 5th,
"As missionaries in an atheistic country, this issue [6 literal days of creation] is actually really important. It is hard for local believers here to accept evolution in Creation as they are coming out of atheism/evolution when they accept Christ. This means they read it as a literal 6 day Creation, as do I. 

Sadly, some of the "expert" westerners here are confusing them more with all the academic knowledge and apologetic reasonings they are passing on. While the educated westerners wax eloquent, the local scratch their heads and wonder what is going on. A simple person should be able to read the Bible and know the Truth. I think we muddy the waters trying to make things so intellectual."

We, the educated, are 'muddying the waters,' and I agree with Arabah.  What must we do to correct ourselves?  It is stated so simply in Hebrews 11, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1).  Jesus himself speaking to Thomas said, "because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed, Blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have believed (John 20:29).

In what is my daily scripture today, Jesus said (sadly, I think), "except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe" (John 4:48).  I'd rather accept His blessing and believe with the evidence I have not seen.  It's a simple matter of faith.

May you have the substance of things hoped for today.

Laura

Illustration Note:  I realize this original is in bad shape - I did it back in  apx. 1994.  I wanted to use it for today's post and I had to dig through my art closet to find it.  My oldest daughter loved unicorns. She was about 9 when I painted this especially for her.  I remember receiving the biggest hug when I gave it to her.  She's now grown and perhaps a little beyond decorating with unicorns, maybe her daughter would like it.  It is acrylic painted on canvas paper.  

Deep Water

Are there times when you feel a certain decision might be getting you in over your head?

Do you ever turn away from an opportunity because you feel you're not equipped?

Have you missed out on a blessing because you let someone else take over?

I turned away from a passion many years ago because I was afraid I wasn't 'good enough' at art. 

Had my faith been stronger I may have accomplished much more for the Lord by this time.  

In the scripture above Jesus asks Simon Peter to "Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draught."  Peter responds by saying, "we have toiled all night and have taken nothing [in other words, we're fisherman, we should know where the fish are].   But he then takes a step of faith and continues, "nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net."

 You know the story....the nets broke for the abundance of fish. They called for a second ship and when it came they filled both to the sinking point.  All because a man said 'Yes' to the Lord when he was asked to go into deeper water.  

Sometimes God asks us to do what seems impossible, or silly.  Why would we want to 'launch into the deep,' when it's perfectly nice and safe and comfortable here on the shore?   We have a problem we want God to deal with, but go out into deeper water??  Why?

Because it's all about faith.  Ask in faith, Believing, and ye shall receive. (Matthew 21:22)  God will equip us if he calls us.  Deeper water?   He'll bring out the boat.  In over our head?   He'll provide the scuba gear.  We need to trust God and prepare for the draught of fish!

Step into deep water today! (With the Lord of course)

Laura

Illustration Note:   This is a watercolor/collage.  I used some salt on the watercolor to get the textured look.  Then I painted random colors on scraps and cut them out for the boats and sea life and sun.

Improving & Growing

Last night was our last night of VBS.   The final scripture happened to be my life verse.  So I decided I am going to get a little brave and show you a piece of art I'm not happy with. (I tried to place them side by side, but blogger won't allow me.)  The first pic is my almost finished product for a children's book--which I'm still not quite happy with.   The 2nd pic is my first rendering, done some time ago, which I don't like, although I was going to use it for the project anyway.  However, my conscience or Type A personality or Colossians 3:23 wouldn't allow it. 

I have improved some skills since first doing the squirrels and the 2nd pic does not reflect what I have learned.  So I redid the picture.  Still not happy - So should I accept sub-par?  Or should I completely re-do A-GAIN?  (The deadline is mine, so that is not an issue.)This internal debate reminded me of the scripture in 2 Peter 3:18, "Grow in Grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ..."   The Greek word for 'grace' means that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, loveliness, and charm.  The 2nd definition is of course unmerited favor.  Having received grace from God (which I don't deserve) I feel I have grown and matured in Christ over the years.  Yet sometimes I still find myself acting like a spiritual baby (Hebrews 5:13-14).  My flesh reacts faster than my spirit and I'm either whining, grumbling, or saying things I shouldn't or at the very least still thinking them.If I have learned more and grown as a Christian, than why am I not showing that growth as often as I should?Same reason I was going to use the sub-par pictures....it's easier.  Too often do we just use our old habits and life styles out of convenience?  We've been given a counselor to help us, and an instruction book if you catch my meaning....Daily we need to pray and ask for the strength, direction and will to behave as mature Christians.  Daily.  Then we will be able to show the grace to others that we have received.   Well, I'm off to work on a certain painting....May you grow in grace today,Laura